Fluid-meter.



F. N. CONNET.

Lum METER. APPLICATION FILED APR.28`.1910.

LQWAM. Patented Dee. 12,1916. i v 2 sHEfTs-SHEET 1.

ATTORNEY I. III. CONIIEI.

FLUID METER. APPLICATION FILED APR. 2. I9Io.

Imm@ De.12,1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

IQSfIQIIL Y BV MWL

ATTORNEY an oro f FREDERICK N. CONN ET, 0F PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.

runnin-METER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

rammen nee. ia, foie.

Application -led April 28, 1910. Serial No. 558,228.

To all whom it may' concern.'

Be it known that T, FREDERICK N. CON- NET, a citizen of the United States, residing at Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Tslarid, have in.-

vented certain hnew and useful Tmprovements in F luid-Meters, of which the follow-l A appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1- is an elevation, partly diagrammatic, ofv

so much of my invention in one of its embodiments as is necessary to an understanding of the same. Fig. 2 is a similar view, illustrating a different embodiment of the invention. Fig. 3 is a detail sectional elevation of a form of thermometer bulb .which may be employed for obtaining the eects of changes in temperature of the fluid. Fig. 4- is a detail view of a system of diHerential pulleys which may be employed instead of the differential gearing shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Figs. 5 and 6 are detail-elevations of portions of -an instrument which may be employed for showing the action of the proportioning mechanism. Fig. 7- is a detail sectional view of another form of dierential gearing that may be employed.

Referring first to Fig. 1, portions of the front and rear walls of a meter casing are indicated respectively at 10 and 11, said walls having bearings for a cylindrical shaft 12. f

It is found experimentally that the relation Log. Q=log. qSH--log. i//P -l-log. XT-l-log. K

is very approximately true, where:-Qg is the actual flow at `any given temperature (T) and pressure (1P), oli-T the quantity passing at some standard temperature and pressure, ntl? a function of the observed pres'- sure P XT a function of the observed temperature T, and K is the meter constant. Since the density W ofa gas is a function of its temperature and pressure we may replace, A

l Log. \,bl)l-log.XT by log. fW Vso that Log. Q=log. H+log.fW+log. K where )"W is a function of the observed density W. The values of H. P. T. and W. are measured by means of suitable devices hereinafter described and thence by means of any suitable mechanism movements proportional to log. olfl, log. :,bP, log. X'l and log. fW 'are obtained. -These movements are preferably added together by means of a multiple differential gear so arranged that the movement transmitted by it is proportional to the algebraic sum of the movements. transmitted to it.

Onsaid shaft 12, near the rear end thereof, is mounted a sleeve 13 having a pinion 14 and a bevel-gear 15. Next to the sleeveI 13 is a sleeve 16 having at one end a bevel- `gear 17 and at the other end an arm 18 having a spindle 19 on which is mounted a bevel-pinion 2O meshing with gear 15. Mounted on the sleeve 16 is a sleeve 21 having a pinion 22 and a bevel-gear 23 which is in mesh with the bevel-.pinion'20. Next in front of the gear 17, and mounted on shaft 12, is an arm 24` having a spindle 25 on which is mounted a bevel-pinion 26. And neXt to/the arm 24 is a sleeve 27 having a pinion 28, and having also VVa bevelgear l29 in mesh with bevel pinion 26.v

Through this differential gearing, motion is transmitted to a cam 30 from which is to be obtained the motion that Will control the cated in Fig. 1, the movements or position of rack 31 are-controlled by the pressure in the throat 34 of a Venturi tube 35 in a manner similar to that disclosed in my application 452,750,1iled September 12,1908. In the present case, I provide a casing 36 which is connected to said throat by a pipe 37. A float 38 at the lower end of said rack 31 is supported by a body of mercury in the casing 36.

To one end of rack 32 is connected one end of a Bourdon tube 39 the other end of which is connected by means of a pipe 40 with a thermometer bulb 41 suitably supported 1n the main 35, which thermometer may be of the type shown in Fig. 3. This bulb is composed ;of steel or other suitable material adapted to contain a liquid whose vapor pressure is to be a measure of the temperay ture of the fluid passing through the tube 'i of the fluid in tube 35 imparted to said bulb. This provides for movements of rack 32, sleeve 21 and bevel gear 23 according to pressure Variations due to changes of temperature of the fluid passing through the Venturi tube.

The lower part of casing 36 has a well 44 which is connected by a pipe 45 with the up-stream side of the Venturi-tube, at 46. Variations of speed, and consequently quantity or volume, of fluid. passing through the Venturi-tube, cause more or less variations in the relative pressures at the points 46 and 34, and therefore causechanges in the level of the mercury in the casing 36 and alter the height of the float 38, and through the rack 31, pinion 14 and sleeve 13, rotate the bevel gear 15. in one direction or the other.

The rack 33 is connected at one end to a Bourdon tube 47 whichis connected by a pipe 4 8 to the up-stream side of the Venturi-tube so that the fluid in the said Apipe 48 and Bourdon tube 47 will be under the same pressure as that in the main. The

rack 33 actuates the pinion 28 and the bevel gear 29 to an amount according to variations in pressure alone. Since the arm 18 moves through half the angle of either of the wheels 15,23, the algebraic sumof half the motionsfimparted to either or both will be transmitted to the arm 18. There is connected to a third wheel 17, one of a pair of '.wheels which with their pinion26 is identical with the first pair. One quarter of the y motion of the first two wheels 15, 23 and one half of the motion of the lfourth wheel 29 are thus transmitted to the arm 24 carrying the second pinion 26. If then the movements representing log. QH and log. XT let us say are multiplied four times and imparted to the wheels 15, 23 by means of pinions 22, 14 fast with them and the movement representing log. pP is multiplied by two and imparted to the wheel 29 b y means of the pinion 28 fast with it, the angular movement of the arm 24 will be that desired. It will therefore be understood that the effects of three different pressures are obtained at the cam 30 due to the equalizing gear described, one being the pressure of the Huid in the main, another that resulting from temperature of that fluid, and another that which results from thel speed of flow of the fluid. The result of the foregoing operation may be indicated by various devices; for instance, referring to Fig. 5 which indicates parts of the inanometer which forms the subject matter of my application 452,7 50, the cam 30 engages a pin or roller 49 carried by a frame 50 mounted on a pivot 51. The frame has a pointer and marker 52 to coact with a dial It also determines the speed of a counter 54. And a pointer 55 moving with said cam coacts with a scale 56. A portion of the casing of such a manometer is shown at 57 in Fig. 6.

In place of the train of wheels a group of pulleys E, El, E2, such as is indicated in Fig. 4 may be employed, movements proportional to four times 10g. QH, four times log. 15P and twice log. XT being given to cords e, c1, e2 passing over the pulleys in such a way that a movement proportional to the sum of these logarithms may be obtained. Or again any other convenient means of adding the movements may be employed. The movement proportional to log. Q, thus obtained, is communicated to the logarithmic cam 30', and is by this cam and the intermediate connections converted into a movement proportional to Q, itself. Said pulleys actuate a cam 30 in the same manner and for the same purpose as the cam 30 before described, it being understood that the three depending ends of the straps or chains indicated would be connected to the Bourdon tubes 47 and'39 and the float 38.

In all of the forms illustrated the device will operate -with accuracy when the values of qJH, rpP, and XT are greater thanabout l of their maximum value, but when these quantities are very small or smaller than ,1U of their maximum value then their logarithmsbecome negative and consequently cannot become represented on their respective cams.

In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 2, the cam 30 may be supposed to be the same as in Figs. 1 and 5, but it is affected by two pressures instead of three. Its shaft 60 has a bevel pinion 61 meshing with a bevel pinin which the rack 81 Works.

carries a pinion 89 Whichmeshes With the ion 62 on the 'upper end of a shaftl 63 of a di'erential gear mechanism the casing and bearings of Which are omitted. On said shaft 63 are a pinion 64 and abevel gear 65, the latter meshing with a bevel pinion 66 Which also meshes With a bevel gear 67, the hub of which carries a pinion 68.

Al casing 70 is connected byv a pipe 71'With the up-stream side of a Venturi-tube, as at 72. Rising from the bottom of the casing are annular Walls 73 and 74, the chamber formed by the inner one containingmercury 75. The annular space or chamber 76 is connected by a pipe 77 With the throat of the Venturi-tube. A bell 78 dips into a body of oil, Water, or other suitable liquid 7 9v around the Wall 74, and has a central depending float 80 in the mercury 75. The bell 78 has an upwardly projecting rack 81 meshing With a pinion 82on a shaft having a bevel pinion 83 which meshes With a bevel pinion 84 on the loWerrend of a-shaft 85. This shaft Yextends up through a sealing cup 86 and at the upper end has a bearing in a bracket 87 supported by the stand pipe 88 of the casing The shaft 85 pinion 68 of the differential gear.

VA casing 90 is formed with means at 91 and 92 for connections, which Will permit a floW of a gas. Whose quality and hence Whose vdensity is to be measured, such as coal gas or producer gas.' The same gas, of course, is flowing through the Venturi tube and the connections at 91 and 92 are made so as to form a by-pass for a gentle flow of the gas. The casing contains a quantity of a suitable liquid 93 in Which is a float 94 carried by the `lower end of a thin Walled and light cylinder 95. This cylinder may be inflated to increase its rigidity. From its upper end rises a rack 96 meshing With a pinion 97 on a shaft 98 Which,through bevel gearing 99, actuates a shaft l100 the lovver end of Which is stepped in the bracket 87 and has a d uit through Which the fluid is" caused to pinion 101 meshing With the pinion 64 of the differential gearing. As the density of the gas varies, the'pressure in chamber 90 varies and consequently alters the relative buoyancy of cylinder 95. Therefore, through the pinions 101, 89and the differential gearing, 'the'cam 30' Will rotate according to variations in density of the gas and its speed of flow through the Venturi-tube.

As it may sometimes be preferable to employ a dierential gear which utilizes only spur pinions and gears, because of the difflculty of cutting bevel gears and pinions so as to avoid the backlash,.l[ may construct the di'erenti'al gearing on the principle illustrated in Fig. 7 in which there are three y pinions 14a, 22aand 28a, it being understood that said lpinions would be engaged by racks in the same manner as the pinions 14, 22 and 28 of Fig. 1 respectively.` Then, instead of sections 12a and 12b, and the cam 30 is carried ,by the shorter section 12".

Having thus described my invention, What T claim is:

1. ln a meter for measuring fluids, a conduit through Which the fluid is caused to I iioW, and means connected with said conduit Aand controlled by the fluid in response to variations in quantity, pressure and temperature of said fluid for obtaining movements proportional to the logarithms of functions of said variations, and means for adding together said'movements to obtain a move ment proportional to the logarithms of flow.

2. Tn a meter for measuring fluids, a conduit through Which the fluidis caused to liovv, means connected with said conduit and controlled bythe fluid in response to variations in quantity, pressure and temperature of said fluid for obtaining movements proportional to the logarithms of functions of i said variations, and differential gearing for obtaining the algebraic sum of said movements.

duit through Which the fluid is caused to flow, means connected With said conduit and controlled by the fluid in response to variations in quantity, pressure and temperature of said fluid for obtaining movements proportional to the logarithms of functions of said variations, and means for adding together said movements to obtain a movement proportional to the logarithms of HOW, and means for Iconverting the movement thus obtained into a movement proportional to the flow itself.

4. In a meter for measuring fluids, a conflovv, means connected With said conduit and controlled by the fluid in response to var1ations in quantity, pressure and temperature obtained into a movementproportional to p the flow itself.

' 5. Tn a meter for measuring fluids, a conduit through which the fluid is caused to flow, means connected with said conduit and controlled by the flow in response to variations in quantity, pressure and temperature of said fluid for obtaining movements proportional to the logarithms of functions of said variations, differential gearing for obtaining the algebraic sum of said movements, and a cam controlled by said gearing. 6. A meter for fluid of varying densities consisting of an integrating device, a cani determining by its position the amount of motion imparted to the integrating device, and means operated by the low of fluid and influenced by varying the quantity, temperature and pressure thereof for controlling the position of the cam.

7 A meter for fluids of varying densities Qconsisting of a conduit through which said fluid is caused to iiow, devices affected by the flow of said uid and influenced by variations in quantity, pressure and temperature of said fluid in combination with differential gearing provided with several elements, which are connected with said devices, measuring mechanisms, and a cam controlling of Huid measured, a cam controlling by its .position the exhibiting device, differential gearing provided with several elements which as a vwhole control the position of the cam, and devices operated by the How of fluid and influenced by variations in temperature, pressure and quantity thereof, and connected to the several elements of the gearing.

9. A meter for fluids of varying densities gears each connected with one of the devices operated by the said variations, and idler pinions between the main gears, whereby the eiliects of the several variables are combined at the end of the gearing.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FREDERICK N. CONNET. Witnesses:

HOWARD E. BARLow, E. I. OGDEN. 

